ATLANTIC BEACH—A group of teachers embarked on a journey across the state, taking in the sights and sounds of North Carolina nature.

During their journey, the teachers recorded what they saw in log books. In a time where electronics play such an important part of our everyday lives, scientists always revert back to log books. It was a place for them to record data, observations and make notes about what they're studying.

"[North Carolina is] the best in the country. You can see more species here than you can anywhere else. Trees, salamanders, anything. You just have to go out there and look," said J.M. Alexander Middle School teacher Sue Zingher.

The information collected from the trip along with video will be used to create virtual field trips to show in classrooms. Teachers say they hope it helps their students think like scientists.

"I just want to show them it's not that hard and they can all be scientists and that's what were trying to grow, having that mind set, interacting, observing and taking that information and putting it into their brains," said Mint Hill Middle School teacher Stefania Przystanski.

The UNC-Charlotte Center for STEM Education also participated.